Insights & News

FIVE REASONS TO GO INDEPENDENT

3/23/2013

If you’re a financial advisor considering going independent to a broker-dealer, you’re not alone.

The pace of breakaway brokers going independent is increasing, according to a survey released in October by Cogent Research. The survey reports that 22 percent of all advisors and 29 percent of those working for a national wirehouse are open to the idea of moving to a new firm. Reasons most often cited in the survey for wanting to leave were the opportunity to make more money and a desire for greater job satisfaction.

Here are the top five reasons we see for going independent:

1. Managing your own time. As an entrepreneur running your own business, you control your time.
2. Higher payout. Better payouts improve your earnings potential.
3. Flexibility in the makeup of your practice. Because you own your practice, you control the products and services you offer. You also own your book of business.
4. Reduced conflicts of interest. Non-proprietary products and access to more than one clearing firm allows advisors to truly make objective recommendations with zero conflicts of interest.
5. Customizable compliance procedures. As an independent, compliance procedures can be tailored to your business.

Independent financial advisors enjoy the ability to set their own hours, build their own clients, and make as much money as their imagination and work ethic will allow. If that sounds like you, then you should consider making the leap to independent status. Going independent isn’t for everyone, though, so we’re happy to discuss it with you.

The broker-dealer relationship is a partnership and all broker-dealers are not created equal. With IFS Securities you’ll gain from the broader perspective that comes from our serving independent advisors and providing capital markets services to institutional clients. A broader perspective means more actionable investment ideas for you.

Whatever your strategy and wherever your areas of investing focus, you will find significant value in the global perspective IFS Securities delivers. The added benefit of easier access to our top strategists, something you might not find at larger firms, will prove to be a refreshing difference benefitting both you and your clients.